The NLEX Road Warriors are now a league‑best 6‑0 after dispatching the hard‑fighting TNT Tropang 5G on Tuesday at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
The team, though, is neither dwelling on their unbeaten start nor looking too far ahead. Instead, they are focused on the here and now—and on the next step up the ladder—according to import DeQuan Jones.
“Honestly, the only time we’re reminded of it [unbeaten record] is after the game. You know, and I think that’s a credit to the staff,” Jones told reporters after NLEX’s win. “Even the first talk we had with Coach Jimmy [Alapag], he said we’re going to have a next‑play mentality. And we’re taking every game one at a time. We literally focus and hone in and put all of our energy into our next accomplishment because we know what we want to achieve.”
NLEX Needed Every Bit of Focus vs. TNT
That singular focus certainly came in handy against the Tropa, who gave the Road Warriors everything they could handle even without key players Calvin Oftana, Jordan Heading, RR Pogoy, Kelly Williams, and Jayson Castro. In fact, TNT and NLEX were tied at 74 with seven minutes to go in regulation before Jones gave his team back the lead for good.
Jones finished with a game‑high 27 points on top of 7 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, and 2 blocks in leading NLEX to the win. His usual partners in arms, though, were limited by the TNT defense, with Robert Bolick scoring only 10 points and Schonny Winston adding just 9.
Still, NLEX did enough to preserve their winning run.
Brick‑by‑Brick Approach
With TNT out of the way, the Road Warriors are now training their sights on the Terrafirma Dyip, whom they will be facing on Friday, August 7, also at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium. Using Jones’s analogy, the Dyip will be the next brick for NLEX, who are taking on a brick‑by‑brick approach to building a potential championship runway this PBA Governors’ Cup.
“That’s going to be brick by brick [building toward a possible championship run]. It’s not going to be ‘Rome wasn’t built in a day.’ I think that’s the quote. And we know and understand that, and we’re just taking it brick by brick,” Jones stressed.
Terrafirma, who lost a close 109‑104 decision to NLEX the first time they met, will be one formidable brick for NLEX, if anything. So, expect Jones and company to hone in and go all out.
